Attorneys Program: Does the Public Trust Doctrine Apply to Groundwater?

Whether the public trust doctrine applies to groundwater in California, and whether the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) has the right to regulate groundwater under the public trust doctrine, this issue is the subject of a pending action involving the Scott River in Siskiyou County. The issue is of major importance to all California water districts and users in California, because—if the public trust doctrine applies to groundwater and the SWRCB can regulate groundwater under the doctrine—they would have authority that the Legislature has never granted to them.